Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, one of the better games of the year in this author’s humble opinion, has ghosted past its sales target – albeit several months late. Capcom had expected the title to sell four million units by 31st March, but according to the survival horror’s website, that accolade has only just been achieved.
While all of this sounds pretty pathetic on paper, it actually makes it the fourth best-selling Resident Evil game of all time – and it still has a re-issue and a couple of DLC packs left to release. Still, with both Resident Evil 5 and Resident Evil 6 being the brand’s best ever performers, it’ll be interesting to see which direction the next instalment in the scary series adopts.
We’re already having nightmares over a return to the all-out action of old.
[source residentevil7.com]
Comments 26
Spooky. Was 6 actually more profitable though? I'd be surprised..
Word up son.
@kyleforrester87 I like to pretend 6 never happend.
@kyleforrester87 No chance IMO. I can only imagine RE7 had a fraction of RE6's budget.
With sales figures of 4m being a 'target' for a game that also was built for VR , it just shows how few games in reality need to sell in order to reach a target. That considering there is around a 100m consoles and a large PC gaming community to sell to.
I quite enjoyed 5 but not as a Resident Evil game. Its a good action game set in the RE world but its not a Horror Survival - something we associate with the name. I can't say that RE7 appals as much as a 3rd person more traditionally set RE game would have done.
@BAMozzy My only problem with the first person perspective is I didn't feel like I got to know the main character, but at the same time he wasn't a blank template like Gordon Freeman where you can project yourself onto him. Where as previous RE games had the likes of Jill, Chris and Leon. I can't even remember the chaps name in 7. Otherwise it was excellent, the combat was really quite well done. Nothing like the Outlast clone I feared and expected.
I had mixed feelings about the game but actually, for a horror game 4 million units is a darn good result.
If you also factor in the loss of brand quality that most long term gamers felt after 6 (and 5 a little) and the move back into the niche survival horror genre then they should give themselves a pat on the back. It was a good game.
Really Capcom had a problem with this franchise. They want the sales of an action/shooter like RE6 but they also knew that fans of the series wouldn't buy another one like it and had to rescue the brand to get good marketing and core sales. 4 million in 3 months was very ambitious for a tarnished brand with a nice market concept.
@kyleforrester87 I admit I haven't played the game yet but the setting, that house with the 'crazy' family doesn't appeal as much as a Raccoon City game with a variety of different mutated enemies. The few 'enemies' that you can 'shoot' didn't look that interesting to me.
First person can still work with decent story to get to know a main character and we have seen a number of games employ a switching option to play in both 3rd and first person perspective too. Its not so much the perspective anyway that didn't grab me but it was just another one of the changes when I was hoping they would make a return to the roots of the franchise. I would have probably been a bit more accepting of the perspective change had we had the likes of Jill, Chris et al and the more traditional settings and enemies too - along with the traditional horror survival nature of it too of course.
@BAMozzy but.... It DID return to its survival horror roots! And it really does "feel" like a classic re game despite the first person perspective. And the setting practically IS the spencer mansion lol. And i wont ruin it but youll traverse a known RE setting or two.
Dont mean any offence but i think you need to play it before formulating an opinion.
Its on sale and its SO worth the $20 or so itll cost you!
You should give it a shot! Seriously.
@Gmork___ Not to the 'roots' of the franchise with the setting, characters etc. The enemies you can actually shoot don't exactly look or feel threatening - not like those in RE1-4.
I may well pick it up in the future but not right now. Sept-Nov has a lot of new games that I am getting so have quite a few games that will keep me going well into the new year. Its one of the games that's on my 'to buy' list when I see it at the right price at the right time (during a gaming release lull).
@BAMozzy It's not completely unlike Alien Isolation but you can play more aggressively with a lot less hide and seek than I anticipated. And it has some very "Resident Evil" style boss fights.
This article has made me feel a bit guilty. If you'd told me a few years ago that a great, return-to-form Resi game would come out in Q1 and I still wouldn't have played it, I wouldn't have believed you. I'm going to throw out my usual excuse again and cry 'backlog'. But if I'm being really honest, after the last couple, the series doesn't have that essential feeling it used to have. If it does return to the style of 5 and 6 though, I'll only have myself to blame...
4 million by end of March in a series many people felt was going into the ground was way, way over-optimistic. I think Capcom hadn't quite realized the scope of just how badly they damaged the RE image with RE6, and hopefully these numbers have humbled them enough to the point that they don't repeat their old mistakes.
But this is Capcom......
Yea 1 of like a small handful of decent games that Capcom is actually doing well w this year...
@Gremio108 You can still buy the game, it's not sold out. Best Buy had it on sale for $24 recently if you had Gamers Club Unlocked, $30 without it.
Not bad, I wonder what Resi 8 will be like.
Speaking of Resident Evil, there's a kickstarter going for a boardgame at the moment. Based on Resident Evil 2. It's in its last 24 hours. Worth a look, the miniatures look nice.
@ToddlerNaruto Yeah, this one's going on my Christmas list I think...
I found the game terrifying but i would really like the thirdperson option. And i really miss Jill and the other hero characters.
I have it, I love it...I'm a baby and I cant finish it xD
3 or 4 years ago I had a panic attack, one of the worst things I've experienced! Now I'm ok but horror things still give me a little bit of anxiety! Also one of the worst things for me is being chased...not seeing what's behind you, and damn the guy with a shovel freaks me out ahah
Language -Tasuki-
Loved this game. Actually im responsible for 2 out of that 4 million target. I love the old characters jill being my favorite but id rather they take the silent hill approach from now on. Different characters with every installment. Hows a battle tested Leon or chris supposed to be scared of a shambling zombie in 2017? I think capcom nailed it. Favorite of the series behind part 2....
@MadAussieBloke Maybe they could do VR in firstperson. And the non VR with both options. Then again you could implement both options in VR to.
I bought this game and played through it almost twice (I missed a coin somewhere ND quit at a point of no return). I liked it, but I thought it was a little disappointing. It wasn't scary or creepy at all, and most of the time I found it to be a little annoying to play. I can go on, but ultimately I thought it was solid and worth the $40 I spent on it.
I hope the sequel use third person camera (with optional first person camera), I don't like fps horror game.
@Gremio108 If you can be patient and wait a full year, I'm sure by Black Friday 2018 the Gold Edition with Full Game + All DLC will be $25 New.
That's what I plan on doing anyways.
..absolutely amazing game, especially in VR - it's STILL the best PSVR game released so far... I recently bought the DLC for it and they've added a cracking horde-esque mode and a puzzle room that is reminiscent of Misery... (and not even mentioning the bizarre 21 survival mode, etc.) - it works soooo well in VR, and an experience you'll never EVER forget... stunning stuff... bring on RE8...
I think it could potentially squeeze out another million in the next six months with the Gold Edition coming out soon. I'm looking forward to seeing how 8 can expand on the 1st person gameplay, but I hope RE2 Remake keeps its original camera perspective like RE1 Remake did.
Wasnt this the one that they bragged would sell like a million copies day 1?
Havent bought it yet. Waiting on the definitive edition, preferably discounted.
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